Hofer introduced nostalgia or mal du pays ' homesickness' for the condition also known as mal du Suisse 'Swiss illness' or Schweizerheimweh 'Swiss homesickness,' because of its frequent occurrence in Swiss mercenaries who in the plains of lowlands of France or Italy were pining for their native mountain landscapes. The term was coined in 1688 by Johannes Hofer (1669–1752) in his Basel dissertation. Music can also be a strong trigger of nostalgia.Ī 17th Century medical student coined the term 'nostalgia' for anxieties displayed by Swiss mercenaries fighting away from home, although some military doctors believed their problems were specific to the Swiss and caused by the Alpine racket of cowbells. These recollections of our past are usually important events, people we care about, and places where we have spent time. Smell and touch are also strong evokers of nostalgia and memories in general due to the processing of these stimuli first passing through the amygdala, the emotional seat of the brain. The scientific literature on nostalgia is quite thin, but there are a few studies that have attempted to pin down the essence of nostalgia, and the reasons that we feel that warm glow when recalling the past.

In common, less clinical usage, nostalgia sometimes includes a general interest in past eras and their personalities and events, especially the 'good old days,' such as a sudden image, or remembrance of something from one's childhood. Nostalgia, in its most common form, was responsible for the old front desk of The Beverly Hills Hotel (from 1942 to 1979) being made into a bar.

Nostalgia synonym